Pneumatic dispatch carrier



May 9, 1933 H. F. vlEAu 1,908,492

PNEUMATIC DISPATCH CARRIER I Filed March 17, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l ies-m@y @@@M Wy fffa'gy May 9, 1933. H. F. WEAU 1,908,492

PNEUMATIC DISPATCH CARRIER Filed March 17, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 hisPatented May 9, 1933 .siiiares HAROLDF. VIEAILOF LIVERPOOL, NEW' YORK,ASSIGNORVTO THE-LAMSON COMPANY,

OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, A. CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS IPNEUMATICDISPATCH CARRIER Application led March 17, 1928. Serial No. 262,557.

This invention pertains to pneumatic dispatchsystenis and moreparticularly to carriers for use in such systems.

It has been customary to provide such carriers with distinguishingcharacteristics, for example a letter, number, or distinctively coloredelement in order to designate the point of origin of the carrier, thecontents of the caiiierf-or example cash or charge slip, or any other:tact necessary to the proper handling of the carrier and theperformance of the desired transaction. Under some circumstances it maybecome desirable to change this designating Vcharacteristic of thecarrier from time to time, and sometimes at quite frequent intervals,and to this end carriers have been provided with -movable index'elements such as shown for example "in the patents to Jennings No.1,585,290, May 18, 1926 and Burns No. 1,195,651, AugustQQ, 1916.

Modern pneumatic systems are'frequently of verycoinplex charactercomprising many outlying stations and employing many opervvatoi's at thecentral station designated to perform special functions, so that it .hasbecome desirable to provide thevcarrier With means capable of indicatinga greatvarietyof matters Vindependently one of the other. VThe usualcash carrier is of standard dimensions devices of usual type.

In the patent to Burns,above noted, a

i lui'alit of indicator rinO's are mountedat one end of the carrier, andprovision is made `for positively locking the several rings inrelatively adjustedrposition, but prior to and after adjustment itis'necessary to actuate a locking element separate from4 "the-ring, and

.therelease of one ring to permit adjustment releases the other so'thatthereis danger of accidental movement'of one ring -While adjustinganother. Moreover, this vcarrier is of that type which opens at oneendso that a Vsubstantial portion of its' length is available for thereception of such indicator rings. Hoivever, such a carrier is notadapted for use in transmitting eashor for likepurposes.

In'the Jennings patenta cash carrier of' I provide an ordinary cashcarrier, having heads ateach endand a'largecentral access opening,,With'a plurality of independently movable index `devices-so disposedthat they Ado not'interfere'with the properoperation of the carrier anddo not decrease the Anormal size-of `the access opening; and forretaining 'such index devices -inproper adjusted pesition Iurnishlockingmeans of very simple character adapted effectively andcertainly to retain Veach index]deviceindeiinitely in ad- ]ustedpositiomalthough permitting them to be adjusted independently atfwillmerelyby the applicationof"suliicientfforcel PreferabLy I employcolorfcharacteristics in connection With one at least'ofthese vindicatordevices, and-by an arrangement liereinafter vdescribed am thus able'toprovide for a large number of distinguishing combina- -tioiis'by the useof but a single movingpart, ,Y i

I so

if desired.

While I Vhave herein shown a preferred embodiment of 'the inventiontogether With ga desirable modiicationthereo-I Wish it to vbe understoodthat the invention is not confined in its broaderraspects to the specicarrangement vof parts herein` disposed, Abut Y may be embodied inotherarrangements. and by the use of materials and' proportions -Ofparts different from those herein vdescribed i Fig. 4 is a fragmentaryenlarged section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a resilient washer forming a part of thecarrier;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a developed edge view of the ring shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary developed view of a portion of one end of thebody of the carrier;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary developed edge view of a second indicator ring;

Fig. 10 is a side elevation of a cash carrier provided with a modifiedconstruction of indicator ring;

Fig. 11 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing a section of such carrier;and

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary elevation of parts shown in Fig. 11. I

The carrier herein illustrated is of that genera-l type more fullydescribed in the patent to `Holdsworth No. 1,585,289, May V18, 1926,although the invention is not necessarily limited to embodiment in thisparticular form of carrier. The carrier, as herein shown, comprisesouter and inner concentric telescoping shells 1 and 2 forming the bodyof the carrier and the heads 3 and 4 Vsecured to opposite ends of thebody. The

one of the heads, for example, the head 3,

and the body of the carrier.

Referring to Fig. 2 for a. more specic description, the numeral 7designates the closed end of the outer shell 1. The head or bumper 3 issecured to the end member 7 of the shell 1 bymeans of a. pair of rivetsor bolts 8. In order. to reinforce the parts, a plate 9 is interposedbetween the inner ends of the rivets 8 and the inner surface of the end7 of the shell. At the outer side of the end 7 a spacer plate 10 isarranged, such plate having openings for the rivets 8, and above thisspacer plate I provide a resilient or spring metal washer 11constituting one element of the index retaining means as hereinaftermore fully described. Above lthis resilient plate or washer 11 I providea spacer plate 12 which underlies the driving washer 6, the bumper orhead 3 being disposed in engagement with the upper surface of the washer6. The rivets or bolts 8 hold all of the above parts in rigidlyassembled relation.

In accordance with the present invention I provide a rotary index ringhaving an inwardly directed radial annular flange 13 of substantiallythe same thickness as the spacer 10, and. Whih. is iat-Grues@ bet-veenouter surface of the end member 7 and the under side of the springwasher 11. This index ring also comprises a cylindrical ange 14 whichencircles the shell 1 at a point closely adjacent to the head 3, theoverhang of the head providing protection for this ring so that thelatter is not readily damaged during the use of the carrier.

The spring plate or washer 11 is preferably provided with one or more,preferably three, ribs, lugs, or bosses 15 conveniently produced by astamping or punching operation. The radial flange 13 of the index ringis provided with a corresponding series of radial sockets orindentations 16 adapted to receive the ribs 15 of the spring washer.Obviously, the ribs or projections may be on the ring and the sockets orindentations in the washer, if desired.

The outer surface of the cylindrical flange 14 of the index ring isprovided with a series of spaced index characteristics, and in Figs. 1and 7 I have shown such characteristics as consisting of groups ofletters of the alphabet. equal distances circumferentially of the flange14 and are preferably centered on the radial planes of the severalsockets 16. Upon the outer surface of the outer shell I provide adesignating character or mark such, for example, as the arrow 17 adaptedto coopcrate with any -of the index characters on the flange 14 todenote that character or group of characters which has been selected.

Normally the detent ribs 15 are seated in corresponding sockets 16 ofthe flange 13 and the resiliency of the washer 11 is such as to preventescape of the detent ribs from the sockets, thus securely holding theindex ring in adjusted position. However, as the ribs 15 are preferablyrounded and the sockets 16 are likewise rounded, it is possible byapplication of sufficient force to the flange 14 to turn the index ringso as to bring another character or group of characters opposite to thearrow 17. The user of the carrier may thus vary the designatedcharacteristic with the greatest ease and without employing tools ormanipulating special and unusual elements not commonly found in carriersof this type, while at the same time the index ring is securely retainedin the proper position. Moreover, the construction thus provided is ofvery simple character and adds but little to the cost or weight of thecarrier, while it is of durable character and not subject to injury norliable to fail even after long periods of use.

In order to provide a greater range of selection than is furnished bythe single ring above described, I provide a second rotary ring.` Ashere illustrated this ring is at the opposite endof the carrier, suchring being designated by the numeral '19. This ring vis in general ofthe same construction as These groups are spaced at,-

the index ring previously described, is `retained upon the end of thecarrier inthe Vsaine manner, and is provided with the saine .authorizerto note at once whether. the article purchased is to be taken yaway bythe purchaser or is to be sent. llfhen the article is to be taken by thepurchaser, it is desirable to have the transaction completed morepromptly than when the merchandise is to be sent, and thus I havearranged this second ring 19 so that the dispatching clerk can readilyindicate to the authorizer whether the article is to be taken or sent.For this purpose I may provide the surface of the outer shell 1 at oneor more points with the word Take suitably marked on or impressed in themetal or shell, and I then provide the ring 19 with a window which maybe brought into registry with the word Take or which may be turned awa-yfrom such word so that the lattei' is concealed. It is, of course, to beunderstood that this particular index characteristic, to wit, the wordTake is merely illustrative of any designating characteristic which itkmay be desired to employ and which is -to be rendered visible oralternately to be occulted at the will of the person dispatching thecarrier.

In order further to extend the utility of the carrier and the permissivevariation in indications which may -be provided, -I may form the ringwith a plurality of windows indicated in Fig. 9 at 20, 20a, 20b and 20.I

Vmay also color the exterior surface of this vring designated as 9a soas to form areas of Vdistinctively different appearances, each of tendsalong the apertured or windowed space. Vith this arrangement it ispossible to obtain a wide variation of designations since any one ofthecolors may be combined Vwith the word Take to indicate a certain fact orcircumstance or alternately the saine color maybe employed as a blank atthe po- -sition of the occulted word Take, thus indicating another factor circumstance. ,For convenience in indicating the position of the wordTake when the latter is occulted by a blank space in the ring, I mayprovide an -arrow or other mark 21 on the surface of the vcarrier.'Ihelnuinber of combinationsmay further be increased by .providing thesurface of the shell with asrmany of theindex chai'- acteristics (forexample, occurrences ofthe word Take) as there are Windowscin the ring,designating each of these several. char- `.acteristicseby a distinctivenumeral or letter as, for example, the reina-n numerals I, II,

etc. Y

Other. and further modifications in.4 carryingforward the .underlyingprinciples'herein exposed will doubtless occur to those familiar lwith Athe art. Y

Figs. 10,11 and.12 illustrate. a. carrier having ,at the head end, anindex ring assembly which embodies the usc of such coloredareas. Sincewith the arrangement shown in Fig. 9 the colored areas are exposedthroughout the entire circumference of the ring, it may not be .19.Preferably the free edge of=.this;flange 14a .isturned outwardly `at 26.andits outer edge ,is knurled, providing a convenient gripping surfacefor the fingers of the user.

The outer surface of this flange ,14a may be coloredas previouslydescribed, but in .this

.instance such outer surface is protected by means of .a secondary ring,here illustrated .as stationary, comprising a flange 24 overlying theflange 14a', such secondary .ring having, a radial flange .which may ifdesired be secured in fixed position bymeans of the head,atta'ching'bolts lor rivets. .Preferably va spacer .25 nia-ybe.introducedbetweenrthis .secondary ringandthe Washer 11a. to p-rovidesufficient .space for the movements of the latter. .The protector ring24: is vfurnished with. a window 27. through whichany one of .thelcolored areas lof the ring laamay be exhibited, .and ifi this4 flangehas windows,

.such-.as the .window 200v of Fig. 12, .itispossible to see indexcharacteristics such .as 18a uponthe outersurface of the shellof thecarrier. The opposite end of theccarrier may be plainor lia-vea rotaryring and is here shown-providedwith a ring 190 having Windows 191through which the wordFTake lll() Vor other index characteristic isexposed .sim-

Vilar` to the rin-g 19 on the carrier shown in -Fig.1.

Vteristics can beprovided `upon this lcarrier and that such combinationscan befmade up atthearll .0f ..theiiser,Wit-hout @Specialisti fort andwith a minimum expenditure of time and without substantiallycomplicating the carrier, adding to its weight, or cutting down thenormal area of the access opening.

I claim:

l. A pneumatic dispatch carrier having a cylindrical body portion and anindex ring embracing said body portion and turning relatively thereto,said ring having a flange provided with a plurality of circumferentiallyspaced indentations therein, and detent means including a spring Washerhaving a boss engageable with the indentations in the ring and exertingforce in an axial direction tending to keep the boss engaged with aselected indentation.

2. A pneumatic dispatch carrier having a cylindrical body portion and anindex ring embracing said body poition and turning relatively thereto,said ring having a flange, detent element-s on the ring flange, and aspring washer provided with cooperating detent elements, said washerexerting pressure in an axial direction upon the flange thereby normallyholding the detent elements thereon in engagement with those on the ringflange.

3. A pneumatic dispatch carrier having a cylindrical body portion and anindex ring encircling said body portion and rotatable relativelythereto, said-ring having an annular flange extending radially over oneend of the body portion, and resilient detent means movable in an axialdirection and noi'- mally engaging the flange to retain the ring inselected position said flange having elements thereon with which thedetent means engage. i

4. A carrier for pneumatic dispatch systems comprising a cylindricalbody portion and a rotatable ring encircling said body portion, saidring comprising a radially extending annular flange and arcylindricalflange, and a resilient plate engaging the radial flange, said plate andflange having cooperating detent elements normally operative to retainthe ring in selected position, said detent elements slipping to permitrotation of the ring when sufficient rotative force is applied to thelatter.

5. A carrier for pneumatic dispatch systems comprising a cylindricalbody portion and a rotatable ring encircling said body portion adjacentone end thereof, said ring comprising an annular flange extendingradially over that end of the body portion and a cylindrical flange, aresilient plate engaging the radial flange, the plate having a detenttooth and the radial flange having a socket engageable by the tooth forretaining the ring in selected position.

6. A carrier ofthe class described comprising a cylindrical body and abumper or r head at the end of the body, a rotatable ring encircling thebody at a point adjacent to the head, said iing comprising a cylindricalflange having a series of distinctive index characteristics upon itsouter surface and av radial annular flange having a series of socketstherein and interposed between the end of the body and the bumper orhead, and a resilient washer interposed between the bumper and saidradial flange, the washer having a detent tooth engageable with any of aseries of sockets in said radial flange, the sockets corresponding innumber and spacing with the series of index character'- istics on thecylindrical flange.

7. A carrier of the class described comprising a cylindrical body and ahead secured to the end of the body, a rotatable ring encircling thebody at a point adjacent to the head, said ring having a cylindricalflange provided with a window opening and a radial annular flangeinterposed between the body and head, a resilient Washer between thehead and said radial flange, the flange and washer having cooperatingdetent elements axially movable and 'normally operative to hold the ringin selected position, but permitting it to rotate when subjected tosuliicient rotative force, and designating characteristics upon theouter surface of the body beneath the cylindrical flange of the rotaryring.

8. A carrier of the class described coin- Vprising a body provided withai head at each end and an access opening in its side wall intermediatethe heads, a movable indicator mounted between said heads, saidindicator having a plurality of differently colored areas, and arelatively fixed shield, said shield having a window, the shieldconcealing all of the colored portionof said indicator except such as isexhibited through the window.

9. A carrier of the class described comprising a body provided with ahead at each end and an access opening in its side wall intermediatetlie heads, a rotary ring encircling said body, saidV ring having aseries of windows therein separated by'blank spaces, the body having adistinguishing index characteristic visible through any selected one ofsaid windows when the ring is properly positioned, but invisible whenthe ring is turned to an intermediate position, and series ofdifferently colored areas upon the i'ing, there being one area of eachcolor corresponding to each window whereby the color of the area throughwhich the characteristic is visible may be determined bythe windowselected to register therewith.

l0. A pneumatic dispatch carrier comprising a cylindrical body portionhaving thereon an index characteristic, a relatively inevable ringsurrounding the body portion over said characteristic. and having awindow therein through which such characteristic may be exposed and astationary Ting SUF- rounding said movable ring and having a windowtherein registering with said characteristic, whereby the characteristicwill be visible when the window in the stationary ring coincides withthe window in the movable ring.

11. A pneumatic dispatch carrier comprising a cylindrical body portionhaving thereon an index characteristic, a relatively movable ringsurrounding the body portion over said characteristic, and having aseri-es of windows therein through any of which the characteristic onthe body portion may be exposed, the surface of the ring at each windowbeing treated, and a second ring surrounding said first ring and havinga window therein larger than the windows of the first ring and adaptedto register with said characteristic wherebywhen the windows in the tworings register th-e characteristicv on the body portion and the treatedsurface at the window of the first ring may be visible.

12. A pneumatic dispatch carrier comprising a cylindrical body portionhaving thereon an index characteristic, a relatively movable ringsurrounding the body portion over said characteristic, and having aseries of windows therein through any of which the characteristic on thebody portion may be exposed, the surface of the ring at each windowbeing provided with color which contrasts with the color at the otherwindows, and a second ring surrounding said first ring and having awindow therein larger than the windows of the first ring and adapted toregister with said characteristic whereby when windows in the two ringsregister, the characteristic on the body portion and the color at theselected window of the first ring may be visible.

13. A pneumatic dispatch carrier comprising a cylindrical body portionhaving thereon an index characteristic, a relatively movable ringsurrounding the body portion over said characteristic, and having aseries of windows therein through any of' which the characteristic onthe body portion may be exposed, the surfaces of said ring between thewindows being treated, and a stationary ring surrounding said first ringand having a window therein which registers with the characteristicwhereby when windows in the two rings coincide, the characteristic onthe body portion will be visible and when the windows do not coincideone of the treated surfaces of the first ring will be visible.

14. A pneumatic dispatch carrier comprising a cylindrical body portionhaving thereon an index characteristic, a relatively movable ringsurrounding the body portion over said characteristic, and having aseries of windows therein through any of which the characteristic on thebody portion may be exposed, the surfaces of the ring at each windowbeing provided with color which contrasts with the color at the otherwindows, and the surfaces of the ring between the windows beingsimilarly provided with contrasting colors, and a stationary ringsurrounding said irst ring and having a window therein larger than thewindows of the first ring and which registers with the characteristicwhereby when windows in the two rings register the characteristic on thebody portion and the color at the selected window of the first ring willbe visible and When the windows in the two rings do not register thecolor of a selected surface of the first ring will be visible.

Signed by me at Syracuse, New York, this 15th day of March, 1928.

HAROLD F. rVIEAU.

